ZEN MEDITATION SAMURAI ZEN DOJO THANE HIRANANDANI GHODBUNDER ROAD

Zen is an amalgamation of Mahayana Buddhism and Lao Tzu's Taoism with some roots in Indian Yoga and Vipassana. It is not a religion but a method to calm the mind.
Zen Meditation is about building awareness of mind, compassion and mindfulness of the universe, which in turn brings Peace and Harmony between self and surrounding.

We are not a traditional Zen School, but a modern Meditation Center inspired by traditional Zen technique & utilizing principles of Psychotherapy to heal the mind. Our faculty includes medical doctors, philosophers and psychotherapists.

"We bring authentic Zen training for one and all in India & Mumbai. Samurai zen is not regular passive meditation, which may be boring, monotonous and repetitive. The mind has to be trained to react with calmness and dignity. Sitting quietly in one posture without training the mind will not help that. We use Zen technique, oriental philosophy, modern psychoanalysis to help ease the mind from stress and strain. We use dynamic mind training methods, psychological exercises and active movement training to develop mindfulness. Tai Chi Chuan, Kenjutsu or Sword play, Yogic postures are used to teach the Za Zen mind in everyday life. At Mumbai HQ, for theory, we study not only Buddhist scriptures, but also Chinese manuscripts of Lao Tzu, Japanese scripts of Hagakure or way of Samurai & sun Tzus Art of War to help kill worry, stress and instil joy, happiness and peace in the mind."

Methods

ZEN comes from Sanskrit word Dyann. It is a method of meditation from Mahayana Buddhism for spirituality. It has its roots from India, China & Japan. Spirituality is needed for celebration of life’s moments and to deal with adversity. There are two types of Zen, Soto Zen & Rhinzai Zen. Soto Zen advocates only meditation or Za zen. It is used by farmers and civilian society.Rhinzai Zen originated in samurai warriors, who faced the prospect of death in battle every day. They needed zen to live every moment of their life happily, inspite of the lurking threat of death the next day. Hence Rhinzai training is more dynamic and advocates mindfulness in motion. When you are aware of how your body moves, you can get aware of the movement of the mind. Elements of swordplay (wooden), study of Samurai scriptures and building a high code of ethics in society are the key elements in training the mind. We also include elements from Soto Zen to derive maximum benefit in Mumbai center.

Zen is about contemplation of life’s absolutes. ANNICA, the impermanence of age disease death n above all Change...which is the only constant in life has to be developed.

The goal of Zen is Satori or Sudden Realization & Moments of liberation achieved through Pragyna or Wisdom. Wisdom is obtained by looking within...via contemplation. Satori is obtained when the mind is trained to focus on the present moment. The Mind has to stop ruminating about the past, stop forecasting the future and focus on present moment. For this you need to be trained in Sati or Awareness.

Shamata training is about focus. Our civilized mind is incapable of focus on mind. Our focus is on material gain, loss or worry. The untrained mind is unable to sit quietly in one place and observe the mind.

The Za Zen technique of Breath awareness tells us not to associate with our negative emotions, but simply focus on breath. Every time we feel negative, we root back to breath. This helps in reducing negativity.

Vipassana training is about awareness of the body. Awareness of the joints, of kundalini sexual energy, about our senses to enable us to see the sky, smell the roses and hear the chirping of birds that we often miss.

Awareness training is to focus on other aspects of engagement. Saying grace to the ones who associate with you, realizing the affection people have, developing empathy for others, feeling love and joy for life.

Shikantaza technique is to detach from self and observe the mind. What is your mind like? What lies in its deepest recesses? Left uncontrolled, where do your thoughts go? Observing self first, then observing self in relation to others. This technique exposes repressions and unconcious thoughts.

Koan is a technique of challenging the mind with opposites. The goal is to puzzle the mind into no mindedness. It develops insights or Kensho, which is a prelude to greater realization Satori.

Since Rhinzai Zen training originated in samurai warriors, Samurai Zen advocates mindfulness in motion. when you are aware of how your body moves, you can get aware of the movement of the mind.

Tai Chi or meditative slow body movements of Wu Shu helps us understand disease and bring balance in life.

Kenjutsu or the art of samurai Sword is using the art of sword fighting with wooden bokken dummy swords to bring focus, concentration, awareness of the moment. In Mumbai, initially slow deliberate movements are used with bokken or wooden sword to teach balance of thought, obedience of body to mind and responsibility for ones actions.

Bushido training vide Samurai Manuscripts is on using ancient samurai warrior code to train in righteousness, duty and wisdom. We need to build a high code of ethics for a happy life.

Buddhas Dhammapada, the 8 fold path is also used to train mind, speech, action and morality. Zen Buddhism is not just about realizing the 4 noble truths of desire causing suferring, but is about choosing moderation over extremes.

In conclusions, Samurai Zen, at Mumbai HQ is unlike traditional vipassana, is not about just sitting quietly with focus on breath. But it is very ACTIVE, AGRESSIVE step towards understanding your mind and gaining knowledge about the MEANING OF LIFE. we use active group discussions and modern psychology to dwell deeper into understanding ourselves.

We look forward to beginning your Zen journey